The Portland daily press., 1887-02-25

CLASS MAIL MArTERJ
aged to do nothing. We are all liable to drop
into a do nothing policy II we can get some.
| body to support us, and ID Is not good public
| policy for us to legislate to encourage yaga-
bondism whether among our soldiers or eiti'
| Zens.
Mr.. Steele Of Indiana-How about theMex-
| lean pension bill?
Mr.. Bragg-I have said that wished the
| President had vetoed it. 1t Is intimated that
| the bill passed because 1t benefits Confeder-
ates. ask any one Of you. bgoted as you
may be, IL you did not get some OF the pork.
l, You all voted for the bill, and now you have
discovered 1t Is monstrosity?
Mr.. Warner of Ohio opposed the bill.
Mr. morrison OF Illinois-In my term Of
ONCE have voted for every pension bill pre-
Sented. In hd this ~ time the pension roll has
| grown from S29.O 1000 to SS0,0O0,0O0 year
Concurring in the general purpose Of the
| pending bill, so far its purpose was to relieve
those who have suffered from service render
ed to the country. voted for this bill
am satisfied it does not contain what its
friends claim for ii. and that 1t is fairly sub
ject to the objections urged against it in the
veto. Besides the veto Is so far above the
high water mark OF the ordinary executive
independence and official manhood that
feel like sharing and taking my little part Of
cratic side.) The President, he said, did not
veto the bill because 1t pensioned too many
or TOO few, but because by no reasonable
construction could man tell what 1t did
mean.
Mr.. Mckinley Of Ohio said that If he be-
lieyed the benefciaries of the bill were
snirks and vagabonds, he would not vote for
ltS passage over the veto Of the President,
but he did not believe with the gentleman
from Wisconsin Bragg that the benefciarles
were either shirks or vagabonds, or good for
nothing scoundrels. He believed there were
thousands scattered over the county who
fought as braVely as the gentleman from
Wisconsin, though they were not here TO tell
OF their deeds Of courage and glory. loud
laughter and applause ON the Republican
side.l Though they never never rode down
the line amid the huzzars Of their comrades.
Mr.. Hepburn Of Iowa, commented on the
fact that every gentleman who had spoken
in opposition to the bill, save one, had voted
for 1t originally. There must be some rea-
son for this. Large numbers Of them like
himself terminated their official lives on the
4th OF March, and large number 0fthem,un-
like himself. were now about the White
House bending the pregnant hinges of the
knees that thrift may follow fawnlng."
loud cheers and laughter on the Republican
side.) l deny the right, he continued, of the
gentleman fromIOhio (Mr. Warner) and the
gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Bragg TO
speak for the Grand Army Of this country
tell you that while these gentlemen once
NA0 OtOuPJ hOnOidUic pldCt5 III tut dTduu
Army and were everywhere received, yet
they are looked on today when they rise In
their places and denounce their old comrades
as yagabonds and scamps, and the scum Of
humanity as Benedict Arnold was. (Re-
newed cheers and applause on the Repnbli-
can side) Look at the petitions post after
post brings in from the Grand Army. In
the light OF all these and the telegram from
the Grand Commander Of the Grand Army
OF the United States, General Fairchild, who
4 z Ia Il ttu .knku ~
the Grand Army has been demanding for
years, should, he said, Offset the statement
Of the gentleman from Wisconsin, Bragg
That the Grand Army has repudiated this
bill Is as untrue in word and essence as the
greater portion OF all his abuse against his
own comrades. lApplause.) 1t Is not an
uncommon thing for a skilled huntsman to
use decoys. SO 1t Is that the South, that op-
poses this bill and that stimulated this veto,
puts forward these Northern gentlemen to
represent 1t. Not one of them, for political
reasons, has had the courage Of his eonvic-
tions and has dared TO speak here as he
Will vote. Why? Because 1t would chal-
lenge the attention 10 this conspiracy be-
tween those that once were opposed to the
United States and who are now "our
friends" / deny that the great dailies of
the cities speak the sentiment of the coun-
try. They do not do 1t. They are its advO-
Gates, mouthpieceS OF wealth aggregated In
communities where they are published; and
~
shame, that this same wealth Is opposed to
those old soldiers. He warned the people of
the large cities and their dailies that these
old soldiers might yet be needed to help
them when socialism and anarchism and
communism had grown to such proportions
as to be beyond local control
Mr.. Rockwell Of Massachusetts would
vote against the veto, and declared that as a
legal and patriotic document the report Of
the committee on invalid pensions far out
Mr.. Lowering Of Massachusetts read nu-
merous petitions Of Grand Army Of the
Republic Posts Of Massachusetts, endorsing
the bill.
Mr.. Matson Of Indiana opposed the de-
bate. 1t had been his pleasure and his duty,
ne said, to stand here and defend the Presi-
dent when that officer had interp0sed his
objection to this legislation. He would be
glad II he could stand today and support the
Presidents veto and present to the country
an united party in support Of that veto, II
his conscience and his heart would permit Ii.
But ne was driven and impelled TO take the
course he had persisted in, and only because
he believed it to be his duty as a legislator,
veto Of the President. He had been asked
whether the President had ever signed a
petition asking that a pension be granted all
soldiers Of the late war. He held in his
hand petition, drawn up in 1884, which was
too long to read now. IL was numerously
signed, and. in substance, asked that a pen
sion OF at least So month be granted to all
honorably discharged soldiers. 1t contained
this endorsement:
81 am sure that the subject Of this petition Is
worthy OF the prompt and careful consideration
OF Congress, and the fullest Justice should be done
70 the parties in whose interests this movement IS
made.
(Signed) GROVER CLEVELAND
As Mr.. Matson concluded nearly every Re
publican was on his feet, and as Mr.. MatsOn
finished reading the endorsement a loud
burst OF applause came from the Republican
side OF the chamber. The vote was then
taken and 1t resulted, yeas, 175; nays, 225:
not the constitutional two-thirds in the
Affirmative.
As the speaker announced the vote, and
stated two-thirds Of the members had not
voted to pas the bill there was a storm Of ap-
plause on the Democratic side which was
answered after an instant by prolonged
hlsses and groans from the advocates OF the
Dill. The members gathered In knots in ex-
cited conversation, and there was much con-
fusion, while the Speaker pounded his desk
10 secure quiet. Finally comparative order
was restored, and, on motion Of Mr.. Herbert
OF Alabama, the House went into committee
Of the whole on the naval appropriation bill.
After brief examination OF the provisions
of the bill by Mr.. Herbert II was read by
sections for amendment
Mr.. Buck of Connecticut, offered an
amendment appropriating $4,000 for naval
war college at Coxe's Island.
A point Of order was made against the
amendment, but II was 0verrruled and pend
ing vote on It the committe rose and the
House at O'Clock, adjourned.